Section 144, Detained Relatives: Pakistan Cracks Down Ahead of PTI’s Sept 27 March
Kasim Khan, son of former Pakistan Prime Minister Imran Khan, warned supporters on Friday against marching toward Adiala jail during the Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf‘s planned September 27 protest, alleging that such a mobilisation could be used as a pretext for a “counter” assault by authorities on the prison that could endanger his father’s life.
The warning comes ahead of PTI‘s planned protest and march calling for Khan’s release. The former prime minister has remained in custody since August 2023 following convictions in multiple cases.
“Please do not give them any reasons”
In a post on X, Kasim Khan said he had been instructed to appeal to the public not to attempt to march or protest near Adiala jail on September 27. He said he had heard from sources that the demonstration could be used as a pretext for the establishment to launch a “counter” assault on the jail where his father is held, and appealed to the public not to give authorities any reason for “accidents” to happen to his father during the protest.
Security clampdown across Punjab
His warning comes amid heightened security measures across Punjab. The provincial government has imposed Section 144 across the province from September 23 to October 5, barring gatherings of five or more people in public places and on roads, and has sought the deployment of Pakistan Rangers in Rawalpindi, Attock, Jhelum and Mianwali. A provincial notification cited what it called a “serious and imminent threat” to public peace and safety from militant organisations and hostile intelligence agencies.
Detentions of Khan’s relatives add to tensions
The planned protest has coincided with the detention of three of Imran Khan’s sisters. Aleema Khan was detained last week, followed by the detention of Uzma Khan and Noreen Niazi for 30 days under the Punjab Maintenance of Public Order Ordinance. On Thursday, the Lahore High Court declined to immediately suspend the detention orders against Uzma and Noreen, issuing notices to the respondents and seeking their response before ruling further.
According to Dawn, lawyers representing the two women argued before the court that they were non-political and had been detained without sufficient legal justification; the court opted to await the authorities’ response before deciding on the request to suspend the orders.
Kasim Khan had earlier criticised the detentions of his relatives, saying in an X post that his aunts and cousins had been forced into vehicles without explanation, and called for international attention to the developments. Pakistani authorities have maintained that the preventive detentions and province-wide restrictions are tied to public-order and security concerns.
The September 27 protest is expected to add further political and security pressure around Khan’s continued incarceration, with authorities tightening restrictions and deploying additional personnel in areas linked to the planned mobilisation.
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